China has said it was sending a high-level special envoy to North Korea over its nuclear weapons and missile programmes, as reported by Xinhua.

The official Xinhua News Agency said, "The director of the ruling Communist Party's International Liaison Department, Song Tao, will travel to Pyongyang on Friday to report on the party's national congress held last month."

For the unversed, Trump has repeatedly called on China to do more to use its influence to pressure North Korea into altering its behaviour.

Song would be the first ministerial-level Chinese official to visit North Korea since October 2015.